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HONOUR THY FATHER 



2i spemorial of 
WILLIAM WESTON PATTON 






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'HP HE object of Dr. Patton's family in sending 
this Memorial to his friends is declared in the 
title. Their desire has been to honor him who 
counted it a sacred privilege to publish a tribute to 
his own father and mother when their work was 
done ; and whose entire life was characterized by 
modesty and self-depreciation to a rare degree, al- 
though by his devotion to public interests he was 
often brought into positions of prominence. 

An account of Dr. Patton's public career is given 
in the sermon with which the Memorial opens. This 
sermon, with the Appendix, was originally printed 
separately, at the request of many friends in the 
Westfield Church who were present when it was de- 
livered. In the Appendix, which thus comes in the 
middle of the volume, appear the Resolutions of 
the Faculty of Howard University, presented to 
Dr. Patton upon his retirement from the presi- 
dency. They are so appreciative of this last work 
of his life, and touched him so deeply by their ex- 
pressions of personal love, as to merit a place 
here. The Resolutions of The First Congregational 
Church of Chicago upon the death of Dr. Patton 
are also given as describing his work as pastor of 
the church which was his principal charge, and as 
editor of the Advance. Similar resolutions have 
been received from The Chicago Congregational 
Ministers' Union, The Washington Association of 



Congregational Ministers, The Washington Confer- 
ence of Congregational Churches, the Executive 
Committee of Howard University, and the Trus- 
tees of Howard University ; and are here grate- 
fully acknowledged, as are also the letters of sym- 
pathy from friends which came in such numbefs as 
to make a definite answer in each case impossible. 

In order to make the Memorial complete, there 
has been added a sketch of Dr. Patton's Home Life, 
which will be appreciated by his friends as a more 
personal account of his character than was possible 
in the sermon, and as coming from his eldest daugh- 
ter, who was with him in the home for a longer pe- 
riod than any of the other children. 

The Memorial closes with a sermon from Dr. 
Patton's own pen on, " How to make the next life 
seem real." The selection was made not because 
this is the finest specimen of his work as an 
author, but because it was in a peculiar degree the 
outgrowth of his own religious experience and hab- 
its of thought in respect to the heavenly world. 
His manner in its delivery was very impressive, and 
suggested an intense realization of the truths he 
was uttering. It was one of the last sermons he 
wrote, and being so much a part of his own life, it 
seems a fitting farewell to his friends. Many have 
spoken of the comfort they received from this one 
sermon of Dr. Patton. May its publication here 
help others to a fuller realization of the heavenly 
life into which he has now entered, no longer to 
know in part and to prophesy in part, but to 
know even as he is known. 



HONOUR THY FATHER 

a Sermon in ^tmot^ of 
WILLIAM WESTON PATTON 



BY HIS SON ,> 
REV. CORNELIUS H.A^ATTON 



ConsreQational Cl^urcl^ of €^ti&t 

WESTFIELD, N. J. 



APRIL 13 
MDCCCXC 



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3Xl2.icO 

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" I SHALL NEVER THINK MYSELF OLD UNTIL MY WORK IS 
DONE, AND THAT WORK WILL NOT BE DONE WHILE I KNOW 
AND WILL WHAT I OUGHT. . . . TO THE END OF LIFE i 

I AM DETERMINED TO GROW STRONGER AND LIVELIER BY 
EVERY ACT, AND MORE VITAL THROUGH EVERY SELF- j 

IMPROVEMENT. I WILL WED YOUTH TO AGE, SO THAT 
THE LATTER MAY BE FILLED AND THOROUGHLY PENE- 
TRATED WITH INSPIRING WARMTH. ..... WHEN 

THE LIGHT OF MY EYES SHALL FADE, AND THE GRAY HAIRS 
SHALL SPRINKLE MY BLONDE LOCKS, MY SPIRIT SHALL 
STILL SMILE. NO EVENT SHALL HAVE POWER TO DISTURB 
MY HEART ; THE PULSE OF MY INNER LIFE SHALL REMAIN 

FRESH WHILE LIFE EiiBVR^S."—Sc/i/ezermac/ier. 



Exodus XX. 12. 

CO begins the fifth of the ten great command- 
ments of God. The four that precede relate 
to the honoring of God. " I am the Lord thy 
God," stands at the head of all these words ; and 
because of this fact there is enjoined upon us, the 
recognition of him as the one true deity, the 
upholding of his purely spiritual nature, the accord- 
ing to him of the reverence due his name, and the 
rendering unto him of worship at appropriate times 
and seasons. Then follows the command for the 
honoring of parents. God himself thus honors the 
father and the mother in placing their honor next 
to his own. 

The reason for this is found in the fact that the 
relation of parents to their children is analogous to 
the relation of God toward his people. It is true, 
the parent has a right to honor from his children, 
because of what he personally is to them ; as 
though before the fifth commandment there stood 
the words, " I am thy father in the flesh," as there 
stands before the first commandment the declara- 
tion, "I am the Lord thy God." But in addition 
to this, the Bible teaches that in many respects the 
parent stands for the child in the place of God ; and 



so shares in the divine honor. If the command- 
ments were divided between the two tables so that 
there were five on each (as there is good reason to 
suppose was the case), then this commandment 
respecting parents was classed with those commonly 
described as prescribing man's duty to God. The 
honoring of parents being grounded in the divine 
side of their position would thus be taken up into 
the honoring of God himself. Moreover, the spe- 
cific regulations of the Levitical law pertaining to 
the duties of children toward their parents seem 
to bear out the same idea. The law required that 
irreverence, or disobedience toward parents, should 
be punished in the same way as irreverence, or 
disobedience toward God, viz., by death. And 
comparing Exodus with Deuteronomy, we find that 
the promises relating to faithfulness in both of 
these relations are closely akin. 

Since, then, we are called upon to honor our 
parents for the sake of God, as well as because of 
what they personally are to us, we can see that 
there is an especial appropriateness in emphasizing 
the honor due a father. God has chosen this of all 
earthly titles to represent his relation to us. He 
pre-eminently is our Heavenly Father. And we 
may be sure that this of the many names he bears 
is the dearest to him, because he has given it to us 
last, and mainly through the revelation of his only 
begotten, his well beloved Son, Jesus Christ. 
There is a peculiar sacredness in the honor which 



children are permitted to render to their fathers; 
and if providentially they are born to fathers who 
are god-like in character as well as in position, who 
themselves are ''sons of God," then blessed indeed is 
their honoring of them. Upon such an one God 
enjoins this duty in double measure, requiring of 
him reverence, obedience and service during life, 
and a corresponding tribute after his father's death. 

With me personally it has seemed that the best 
tribute I could pay to him who has stood to me in 
this sacred relation, would be through the endeavor 
to nourish within myself, and so manifest to the 
world, all that was noble, great and godly in him. 
When a man has been of value to the world, the best 
possible tribute that he can have after death is 
the reproduction and continuation of his life in 
others and especially in his children. Such an 
honoring of a father is a living and abiding memor- 
ial ; and so more to be desired than a setting forth 
in words of what his life has been. And yet there 
is a place for the verbal tribute. The command to 
honor thy father includes the recognition of his 
worth among men by word of mouth, as well as by 
deed and life. As with that higher relation mirror- 
ed in this, in the heart is found the essential 
honor, but " with the mouth confession is made." 

I rejoice that in the providence of God there is 
granted to me a special opportunity in this way ; and 
I am sure you all will rejoice to have me use it. In 
a promiscuous gathering such words as I desire to 



speak might be deemed inappropriate ; but certain- 
ly not here. In this little church we are a family ; 
and into our circle, he of whom I shall speak sought 
to come. As a member of this church, if God was 
willing, he desired to spend his last days, and every 
step had been taken toward entering into such a re- 
lation to us, except the formal reception on the 
Lord's Day. But the Heavenly Father planned far 
better for him, and so in telling you the story of his 
life, I am but making you acquainted with one whom 
you expected to know and appreciate by seeing him 
go in and out among you day after day. 

William Weston Patton was born on the 19th of 
October, 1821. He was the oldest surviving child 
of Rev. William Patton, D.D., and Mary Weston 
Patton.* At the time of his birth his father was 
pastor of the Central Presbyterian Church of New 
York City. His father was a man of great individ- 
uality and power, as several of our own congregation 
here can testify, having sat under his ministry in 
their youth. Anecdotes are abundant to-day in 
these parts of his strength as a preacher, and his rare 
gift of humor and geniality in conversation. His 
commanding presence, together with his original 
way of enforcing the truth, gave his sermons a re- 

* The other living children of Dr. William Patton are : Mrs. 
Mary P. Comstock, Hartford, Conn.; Ludlow Patton, New York 
City ; Mrs. Catharine P. Howard, Hartford, Conn. ; Mrs. Emily P. 
Perkins, London, England. 



markable staying quality. Few heard him without 
being impressed, and having the substance of the 
discourse remain in the mind. '* I remember a ser- 
mon which your grandfather preached," is a phrase 
with which I have become very famiHar of late years. 
His ministry was divided principally between the 
Central Presbyterian Church, which he himself or- 
ganized in Broome Street, and the Spring Street 
Presbyterian Church. He also filled the Secretary's 
chair in the Educational Society, and for a time was 
pastor of a Congregational Church in Hammond 
Street. He was the original suggester of both the 
Union Theological Seminary, and the Evangelical 
Alliance, and was numbered also among the founders 
of these institutions. The latter part of his life he 
spent in the writing of books. 

As for the inheritance which came to my father 
from more remote ancestors, it may be stated that 
his grandfather. Col. Robert Patton, belonged to a 
Scotch-Irish family and removed to this country in 
his youth. He gained his title in the War of the 
Revolution, where he served under Washington and 
Lafayette. Afterwards he was appointed the first 
Postmaster of Philadelphia under the new Govern- 
ment, a position which he held continuously for 
about thirty years. He was a man of remarkably 
strict integrity, and of strong anti-slavery views. 

And now what shall I say of the mother ? She 
was a good mother, a native of Massachusetts, a 
Christian from early years, very warm and loving in 



her disposition, and desiring above all things to have 
her children followers of the Lord Jesus Christ. 
She taught my father his letters from the great 
family Bible, and watched the development of his 
life as a boy and as a minister with intense interest. 

My father at eight years of age was sent to a 
boarding-school conducted by his uncle at Prince- 
ton, N. J., where at once he started upon the study 
of Latin and Greek along with the common Eng- 
lish branches. Four years were spent there, and 
two more at various schools, his academic educa- 
tion being completed at a private academy in 
Torringford, Conn. In 1835, when only fourteen 
years of age, he entered upon his college course at 
the University of the City of New York. He was 
naturally a bright scholar^ and enjoyed study ; so 
that he was enabled to stand high in all his classes. 
But at this period of his life he was noted quite as 
much for his willfulness and his mischievous quali- 
ties as for his attainments in scholarship. He 
frankly bore testimony in later years to the trouble 
and worry which he caused his parents and in- 
structors in these years of which we are speaking. 

But one day, while he was a student in College, 
he wrote on the blank page of his Bible the follow- 
ing words : " I hereby resolve to give myself away 
to the Lord, and separate myself from the world." 
It was brought about by a trip with his father to 
New Haven, where some special meetings were be- 
ing held, attendance upon those meetings, a walk 



in the fields with a ministerial friend, and by the 
Holy Spirit. That was March 24, 1837. I men- 
tion the exact date because it was the beginning of 
an entirely new life to my father. The change of 
heart which he then experienced was absolute. 
During all the rest of his life he looked back upon 
that day with peculiar tenderness. And when fifty 
years had rolled around, and he found himself at the 
head of a University, he preached to the young men 
under him, from the text: '' Come and hear, all ye 
that fear God, and I will declare what he hath done, 
for my soul." He was naturally reticent about re- 
lating his own spiritual experience ; but under the 
power of the fiftieth return of that spiritual birth- 
day, he opened his heart, and told the story of his 
coming to the Lord, and the way God had led him 
since that time. It was but doing before others, 
in his desire to win those young men to Christ, what 
every year he did to himself on his knees before 
God, when the 24th of March came round. It is 
noteworthy also, that upon the day of his conver- 
sion he began keeping the journal which he contin- 
ued uninterruptedly throughout his life. 

One who knew him as a boy states that he was a 
leader even then. Among his comrades he never 
followed. It was always " Come, boys," in playing 
top and kite and ball. He was the originator and 
leader in all that they did, and especially in their 
mischief. But immediately upon conversion all this 
energy of his nature and his natural ability for lead- 



lO 



ership were turned into the service of Christ. In 
the University among his fellow-students, in the 
Church and in the community he went to work with 
a zeal that was remarkable. His father, just before 
this time, had given up the pastorate of the Broome 
Street Church, and was attending Dr. Skinner's 
Church, on Mercer Street. It was a delightful place 
to attend worship in many respects, but my father 
regarded it as "too wealthy, fashionable and world- 
ly," and as affording small opportunity for doing 
good. He therefore united with a small Mission 
Church, and engaged in work there. Later, when 
his father became pastor of the Spring Street 
Church, where there was a vast field for Christian 
energy, he transferred his membership to that 
body. 

About the same time he graduated from college, 
and entered the Union Theological Seminary of 
New York City. The idea of becoming a minister 
of the Gospel came to my father simultaneously 
with his conversion. He was converted into the 
ministry as well as into the Christian life. While 
engaged in his theological studies, which he pursued 
with great diligence, he was also intensely active in 
the Church. He formed a large Bible Class of 
young ladies, whom, according to the custom then, 
he met twice on Sundays, and visited with great 
faithfulness during the week, for the sake of per- 
sonal conversation upon religion, at the same time 
making each member a special object of prayer. I 



have found an old blank-book containing the record 
of that class work. One hundred and eleven names 
of young ladies are entered ; and when he left them 
to enter the ministry, nearly all of them had been 
brought to Christ ; and he records the fact that of 
all who remained steadily in the class only one 
continued obdurate. What a record ! And it was to 
be made yet more complete; for twenty-seven years 
after, on a Sunday morning, at the close of the 
service, a lady was waiting for him at the foot of 
the pulpit steps. It was the one member of his 
class who, notwithstanding his many prayers and 
entreaties, had remained out of the fold. After ex- 
changing greetings, his first question was, " Har- 
riet, do you love the Lord Jesus Christ?" And, to 
his unutterable joy, she replied, "Yes, I trust I 
do." * 

He was also one of the leading spirits in the 
prayer meetings of the Spring Street Church, and 
especially in the meeting held at six o'clock on Sun- 
day mornings during times of special interest, which 
seem to have been nearly all the time in that 
church. Week after week he would rise at five 
o'clock to open the church and light the fire for 
that service. During the same period he was also 
a worker for the American Tract Society, oversee- 
ing a district in the city, and visiting high and low 
within its borders. 

To appreciate the energy of his Christian life we 

*See " Prayer and its Remarkable Answers," p. 307. 



12 



need to follow him on one of his vacations. It was 
to Granville, N. Y., that he went one summer to 
spend a season of recreation in the country. But 
having been asked to lead one of the prayer meet- 
ings in the little church of the town, he preached 
Christ so effectively that a revival sprang up at 
once. The minister seeing that the Lord was using 
this young man, asked him to take charge of the 
services, which he consented to do, preaching night 
after night. The work continued as long as his va- 
cation lasted, and when he went home the people 
gave him so many evidences of their love that he 
was quite overcome, and prayed God to be kept 
humble. And now that I have related this incident 
thus far, I might as well finish it, although what fol- 
lowed is a curious commentary upon the narrow- 
ness of some of the ministers of that day. In the 
course of time the pastor of the Granville Church 
reported to the Presbytery the large accession to his 
church as the result of that summer's work. He 
stated that a son of Dr. Patton, of New York, had 
been among them, and his preaching had been 
greatly blessed! But when questioned by the min- 
isters, the fact came out that this young evangelist 
had not been licensed to preach, and immediately 
the disapprobation of the Presbytery was made 
manifest. A communication was sent in post haste 
to the Union Theological Seminary and to the 
father of the culprit, insisting that such doings were 
irregular and must be stopped. 



13 

They had no further occasion for worry, however, 
as during the next vacation, to avoid the recurrence 
of such a disturbance, as well as for his own im- 
provement, it may be assumed, his father started 
him for England on board a sailing vessel. The 
voyage was long, and being outside the domain of 
any ecclesiastical body, he was enabled to preach to 
the sailors and his fellow passengers to his heart's 
content. And a year after his return he was exam- 
ined by the Presbytery of New York, and was 
approved as a preacher of the Gospel, so far as man 
was concerned. 

He had received his commission from God long 
before, and so it was with great joy that the next 
Sunday he entered his father's pulpit to preach his 
first regular sermon, being twenty years old. The 
people all wondered to see him there, so youthful 
was his appearance. His mother, down in the front 
pew, wept all through the service, and his father 
behind him was much overcome. 

We have reached now, the year 1843. He was 
married during January of that year to Sarah Jane 
Mott, of New York City, a young lady from his 
Bible Class, of rare sweetness of character, and who 
entered earnestly and sympathetically into his work 
during the seven years she was spared to him. She 
became the mother of three of his children, two of 
whom died during childhood. One week after his 
marriage he was ordained over the Phillips Congre- 
gational Church of South Boston, Mass. They had 



14 

waited for him six months, until he was of age, he 
having declined to become their pastor before that 
time. He became the pastor of a Congregational 
Church because of the greater liberty which was 
offered to him there as a minister. He found hinj- 
self out of accord with the Presbyterian ministers 
on several points, especially in his strong anti-slavery 
opinions, and to avoid the repression which the 
Presbyteries at that time exercised in that direction, 
he espoused the New England faith, of which he 
became an able expounder and enthusiastic advo- 
cate. 

At his ordination, however, he learned that narrow- 
ness was not confined to any one denomination. 
Some of the Council objected strongly to the fact that 
he had a leaning towards the view of santification 
which was advocated by President Mahan of Oberlin, 
and Rev. Charles G. Finney. Some of the ministers 
insisted that he should pledge himself not to admit 
these brethren to his pulpit. This he resolutely 
refused to do. The discussion and the examination 
over this point were earnest and long ; they were pro- 
tracted even into the evening. The hour for the 
evening service arrived ; and the church was filled 
with a waiting and a wondering throng. Finally, 
one hour after the appointed time the Council ap- 
peared and proceeded with the ordination. Thirty- 
one years later Dr. Patton was a delegate at the 
meeting of the National Council of Congregational 
Churches in Oberlin, Ohio. There he had the grat- 



15 

ification of hearing the Council, composed of distin- 
guished clergymen from all parts of the land roused 
to a high pitch of enthusiasm by an address from 
Mr. Finney, unanimously request him to preach to 
them on the following Lord's Day. 

It is remarkable how many conspicuous reversals 
of public and ministerial opinion my father lived to 
see. From the first he was broad, tolerant, and far- 
sighted. This led him to take positions far in ad- 
vance of many of his day, and hence to clash with 
not a few of his brethren of a narrower turn of 
mind. He held to his opinions manfully and often 
at the cost of fellowship with other ministers, and 
even of personal friendships. He did not worry or 
fret over this, deeply as it grieved him. He trusted 
that time would work a change ; and how often this 
proved to be the case ! In fact, the history of his 
three years at Boston might be summed up as an 
illustration of this. He was drawn to that field 
because of the prevalence of the anti-slavery senti- 
ment in the city, and yet he found very soon that 
many of the prominent men in his own church did 
not accept his advanced positions on that subject. 
This with theological differences led some of the 
older members to remonstrate with him. He ap- 
preciated the fact that he was exceedingly young 
to be the teacher of these men, and so it was a sore 
trial that in order to be true to himself he had to 
go contrary to their opinions. He felt this particu- 
larly with reference to one of his deacons, who 



i6 

himself a very conscientious and faithful Christian, 
thought his pastor was making not a few mistakes. 
Many were the conversations they had together 
over these vexed points. Personally they were 
good friends, but when my father left the church to 
go to another field, he felt that it must be a great 
relief to good Deacon Drake. 

But this ^is what happened. Some forty years 
after, when he was a resident of Chicago, 111., a lady 
called at his house and related what had recently hap- 
pened at a meeting in the old Phillips Church, South 
Boston, when they were discussing the merits of var- 
ious candidates for the pastorate which was then 
vacant. They had heard an elderly man, a middle 
aged man and a young man, and the opinions were 
various. Most of them, however, inclined toward call- 
ing one of the more mature candidates ; when Deacon 
Drake, now an old man, quietly arose and said : '' I 
have been in this church a good many years and I 
have known the ministers well. Sometimes we have 
had pastors who were well along in life and some- 
times we have had those who were younger, and 
once I remember we had a mere boy, and it is my 
belief that the church never did better than when 
we had the boy." My father told me that never in 
his life, had any commendation touched him like 
that testimony from Deacon Drake. To use his 
own words, *' I nearly fell down, I was so amazed." It 
was not so much that in the progress of time his old 
opinions had been justified, but that the mistakes 



17 

which he felt he had made because of his im- 
maturity had been so generously overlooked, and 
that in spite of them he had accomplished much 
good in Boston. 

In January, 1846, he accepted a call to the Fourth 
Congregational Church of Hartford, Conn. The 
eleven years he spent there were a time of great ac- 
tivity. The church was not strong and the man- 
agement of nearly all its affairs, financial as well as 
spiritual, fell upon him. In both spheres he worked 
with a tireless energy. He soon saw the need of a 
better church edifice and in a different location, and 
it \va.5 mainly through his personal efforts that a 
lar^'e, fine building was constructed, paid for and 
the^ lied. This same building is in use to-day, the 
Church occupying a commanding position 
: City for the furtherance of city missionary 
work. It is now manned with two pastors. 

The history of the church during the time of my 
father's pastorate was marked by a succession of re- 
vivals. There was a notable increase in the mem- 
bership of the church, and in the spirituality of the 
people. The people were a unit with their pastor 
in his opposit'on to slavery. The work in this di- 
rection to be done at that period was mainly among 
the churches to bring them to a sense of the evil of 
slavery and their duty in respect to it. And so from 
the Fourth Church as head-quarters in Hartford, the 
agitation was carried into church gatherings and es- 
pecially into the Annual meetings of the great re- 



ligious societies, such as the American Board and 
the American Tract Society. When the American 
Board refused to forbid slave-holding by the mem- 
bers of their churches in the Indian Territory, the 
Fourth Church drew up a protest which their pas- 
tor presented at the Annual Meeting of the Board. 
Its effect may be judged from the fact that as soon 
as its purport was apparent, a leading Corpo- 
rate Member, the pastor of a church in Washing- 
ton, D. C, rose up, and shouted at the top of hh 
voice : *' Young man sit down. We don't care tc 
hear from you." That was the end of the protest. 
But it was one of the unique experiences in my fa- 
ther's life, some forty years later when President of 
a University to educate a free colored race, to con- 
duct the graduating exercises of the Theological 
Department from the pulpit of that same church 
whose pastor had so violently opposed that early 
plea for the slave. 

It was also as an opponent of the American Board 
at this period on the question of slavery, that he be- 
came one of the organizers of the American Mission- 
ary Association. And in every wa} , by sermons 
preached and published, by lectures delivered in 
many places and by editorials in the FAigious 
Herald, the denominational paper of the State 
whose management had been committed .o him, he 
sought to aid the great reform. 

Domestic affliction came to V-r) a^ Hartford, in 
the death of his wife and two o children. It 



19 

was there also that he found his second companion, 
Mary Boardman Smith, to whom he was married, 
October i , 1 85 1 . For twenty-nine years they labored 
together. Through her refined nature, her rich in- 
tellectual endowments, and her rare capacity as a 
mother and as a leader among women, she was en- 
abled to add greatly to his efficiency in the various 
positions he filled, and to be a strong influence upon 
his personal character. She became the mother of 
six children, four sons and two daughters, all of 
them living to-day.* 

While at Hartford he came in contact with two 
remarkable men who had so much influence upon 
his after life and thought, that special mention 
should be made of them. One was Dr. Horace 
Bushnell, the great theologian, and I may add 
heretic of his time ; and the other was Mr. Finney 
the evangelist, whom I have already mentioned. Dr. 
Bushnell was pastor of the North Church of Hart 
ford when my father was there ; and it was during 
this period that he went through his great contro- 
versy with the other ministers of the State His 
doctrines were regarded as so unsound by many of 
the ministers that they refused to fellowship with 
him ; and steps were even taken to depose him from 

* The surviving children of Dr. Patton are as follows : — By his 
first marriage ; William L. Patton, New York City. By his second 
marriage; Normand S. Patton, Chicago, 111.; Robert W. Patton, 
Chicago, 111.; Mrs. Caroline P. Hatch, wife of Rev. David P. 
Hatch, Rockland Maine ; Horace B. Patton, Rutgers College, New 
Brunswick, N. J.; Cornelius H. Patton, Westfield, N. J.; Mrs. 
Mary P. Welles, wife of Martin Welles, Westfield, N. J. 



20 



the ministry. My father while not agreeing entirely 
with Dr. Bushnell's views, was yet abundantly will- 
ing to tolerate them, and being entirely frank in his 
attitude toward both parties, it happened that he 
became a sort of go-between for Dr. Bushnell and 
his chief opponent Dr. Hawes ; and it was quite 
largely through his instrumentality that a reconcilia- 
tion was finally effected between these great leaders. 
This led to a close acquaintance with Dr. Bushnell, 
a warm friendship, which was kept up until the 
death of the great theologian, and a large apprecia- 
tion of his character and ability. 

With Mr. Finney the contact was of a still closer 
kind, but shorter in duration. Mr. Finney stayed 
at his house during one winter when revival ser- 
vices were being held, and the attachment which 
had begun before now ripened into a close bond of 
sympathy, which bore abundant fruit in after life. 
My father has written this in his journal: *' I am 
more indebted to Mr. Finney than to any other man 
for theological clearness on many essential points, 
and for knowing how to preach with reference to 
immediate effect on the hearer." He considered it 
a great blessing to have known intimately two such 
men as Dr. Bushnell and Mr. Finney. They were 
widely different from each other, but I can see that 
coming into contact with my father during the 
formative years of his ministry, they had a powerful 
influence upon him, and that there was effected a 
sort of amalgamation of them in his life. As a 



preacher and writer he had not a Httle of the pro- 
gressive, thoughtful, logical ability of Bushnell, to- 
gether with the earnest, common-sense, practical 
power of Finney. And with them both he hated 
narrowness and intolerance, and fought it whenever 
it appeared."^ 

In January, 1857, ^^ was installed over the First 
Congregational Church of Chicago, 111. He was 
selected to fill this important position largely 
because of his anti-slavery views and practices, 
together with his known ability as an organizer 
and preacher. The Northwest was just beginning 
to enter upon its period of remarkable growth, and 
there was a rare opportunity for the progressive 
pastor. As standing at the head of the oldest 
church of the denomination in the city, he was 



* The reference to Dr. Patton's indebtedness to Dr. Horace 
Bushnell suggests an incident which testifies to the quality of his 
sermons, and also to his remarkably playful disposition. Mary 
Boardman Smith, who became his second wife, was a member of 
Dr. Bushnell's Church and a great admirer of her pastor. Dr. Pat- 
ton was accordingly somewhat apprehensive as to how she would 
enjoy the change of ministers. She very generously relieved him of 
all anxiety on that point soon after the wedding, but would fre- 
quently ask to be read to from a volume of Dr. Bushnell's sermons.- 
Occasionally she would break in with some such remark as : " There, 
isn't that a fine passage ! Now, William, if you could only write 
like that ! " This happened several times, until one day her en- 
thusiasm rose to a particularly high point, and he was frequently 
interrupted with the exclamations: "That's beautiful!" "Isn't 
that grand ! " culminating finally in the question, " There, William, 
why don't you write like that?" Whereupon, hardly able to re- 
tain his composure longer, he passed the volume over to her ; and 
she found to her fond dismay that he had been reading from one of 
his own old manuscripts, which he had slyly slipped into the book 
before beginning. 



called upon to take the lead ; and the strong stand- 
ing of our denomination to-day in Chicago (where 
we have some forty-five churches), and indeed in 
the regions beyond, is due in no small degree to 
his work at that time. His own church immediate- 
ly became the centre of large missionary undertak- 
ings. They carried on four missions at the same 
time, the object being to form them into indepen- 
dent churches as fast as possible. As soon as such 
organization was effected in one field, work was 
immediately begun somewhere else. This policy 
accomplished wonders in the way of church exten- 
sion. Union Park Church, now one of the strongest 
in our entire denomination, was started under Dr. 
Patton as a mission. This Church has itself sent 
out many branches ; these in turn have become 
Churches, and, following the example of the parent 
and the grandparent, have of themselves established 
missions. 

For better work in the home field, Dr. Patton's 
own church was divided into twelve districts each 
with an overseer, who visited regularly and con- 
ducted a meeting in his district at stated intervals. 
In this way the Church grew rapidly ; and the 
membership increased during his pastorate of ten 
years from two hundred and sixty-eight to one 
thousand and fifty-six."^ 

*These figures are taken from the printed report of the Church Clerk 
at the Twenty-fifth Anniversary of the Church. Other figures are 
given in the Memorial from the First Church after Dr. Patton's 
death. See Appendix III. 



23 

During the same period the Chicago Theological 
Seminary was established, Dr. Patton being one of 
the organizers and serving as President of its Board 
of Directors. Much earnest and self-sacrificing 
work he put into this Seminary, which now leads 
all our Theological Institutions in the number of 
its students. At the same time he was doing 
regular editorial work, was delivering lectures at 
various places, taking a prominent part in the 
denominational gatherings, in the extension of the 
churches into the surrounding region, and working 
all the time for the abolition of slavery. 

And then came the war. He had hoped and 
worked for a peaceful solution of this great question, 
but when God ordered otherwise he fell into line 
and from this time on worked harder than ever for 
the slave and for his country. At the breaking out 
of the war he gave notice from his pulpit that the 
men of the congregation would meet every night 
for drill in the lecture-room of the Church. Many 
of his young men stimulated by his words enlisted 
under the lead of the gallant Major Whittle one of 
his members, now the well-known evangelist. 

Thereafter for four years 'Svar sermons " abound- 
ed at the First Church. They constitute now a 
great pile among Dr. Patton's manuscripts. Their 
texts and subjects are striking and attest the 
earnestness and thoughtfulness with which he fol- 
lowed every turn of events. The thought which 
was uppermost in his mind was the bearing of the 



• 24 

war upon the emancipation of the slaves ; and it 
was with a sad heart that during the early stages of 
the struggle he noticed the indisposition of the 
government, the army and the leading politicians, 
to connect that object with the preservation of the 
Federal Union. 

Upon the organization of the Sanitary Commis- 
sion of the Northwest, he was elected Vice-Presi- 
dent, which became the place of general executive 
management. In this capacity he made frequent 
visits to the seat of the war in the West, to inspect 
the sanitary condition of the camps and hospitals."^ 

But his grandest work at this time was in connec- 



* On one of these journeys, while riding on the cars, by way of 
whiling away the time, he scribbled off on the back of an envelope a 
" New John Brown Song," in which he sought to express the moral 
issues of the war in relation to slavery, using the first line and 
chorus of the orignal version which was just then becoming popu- 
lar. Four of the new stanzas ran as follows : 



Old John Brown's body lies a-moldering in the grave, 
While weep the sons of bondage, whom he ventured all to save 
But though he lost his life in struggling for the slave. 
His soul is marching on ! O Glory ! Hallelujah ! 



John Brown he was a hero, undaunted, true and brave, 

And Kansas knew his valor, where he fought, her rights to save, 

And now, though the grass grows green above his grave, 

His soul is marching on ! O Glory ! Hallelujah ! 

III. 
He captured Harper's Ferry with his nineteen men, so few. 
And he frightened '* Old Virginny," till she trembled through and 

through ; 
They hung him for a traitor, themselves a traitor crew, 
But his soul is marching on ! O Glory ! Hallelujah ! 



25 

tion with the great mass meeting in Chicago, which 
sent a memorial to President Lincoln, urging him 
to issue a proclamation freeing the slaves through- 
out the South. The meeting gathered at his sug- 
gestion, the memorial was dra^wn up by his hand, 
and he was placed at the head of the Committee to 
present it to the President. This he did with Dr. 
Dempster, his associate, arguing the matter with 
Mr. Lincoln, who talked with them freely for an 
hour, and bade them good-bye, thanking them for 
their words and promising to give the matter fur- 
ther thought and to do his duty. The day after 
their report was published in the papers, many of 
which made light of their hopes, the preliminary 
proclamation of emancipation was issued. Mr. 
Lincoln had had the matter under consideration 
and so welcomed the interview with the Chicago 
Committee. Their work was that of confirming 
a desire which already existed in his own heart. 
As Secretary Stanton remarked to Mr. Medill of the 
Chicago Tribune^ " Tell those Chicago clergymen 
who waited on the President about the Proclama- 



IV. 

John Brown was John the Baptist of the Christ we are to see — 
Christ who of the bondman shall the Liberator be ; 
And soon throughout the sunny South the slaves shall all be free, 
For his soul is marching on ! O Glory ! Hallelujah ! 

The entire song was afterward printed in the Chicago Tribune, 
and became wonderfully popular in the Western Army. The 
" Jubilee Singers " some years after adopted two of the stanzas for 
their use, thus giving them yet wider currency. Wendell Phillips 
used to quote the third stanza with great effect at times. 



26 

tion of Emancipation that their interview finished 
the business." * 

At the close of the war he spent a year traveling 
in Europe and the Holy Land ; and upon his re- 
turn in 1867 he resigned the pastorate of his church 
to take the editorship of the Advance, a paper which 
was started as the organ of the denomination in the 
Northwest. The name was of his own choosing, 
and it truly represents the work he did as editor for 
five years. The paper immediately achieved a 
reputation for the vigorous and broad treatnient of 
questions of the day which characterized its editorial 
pages. When the business basis of the Advance 
was changed as a result of the great fire in Chicago, 
Dr. Patton gave up his position on the paper, and 
for four years devoted himself to work of a more 
general nature. Part of this time he was Secretary 
for the West of the American Missionary Associa- 
tion. This was also the period when he wrote 
his book entitled Prayer and Its Remarkable 
Answers, which went through twenty editions, and 
to-day is considered by many as the best exposition 
of prayer on its doctrinal and experimental sides. 
During the same years he also delivered lectures 
before the Oberlin and Chicago Theological Semin- 
aries on Scepticism, as well as contributing fre- 
quently to the religious papers and reviews. 

* For a full account of this Memorial see Publications of the 
Maryland Historical Society, ''President Lincoln and the Chicago 
Memorial on Emancipation." Rev. W. W. Patton, D.D., LL.D., 

1888. 



27 

In 1877 there came from the Trustees of Howard 
University in Washington, D. C, a call to the presi- 
dency of that institution. The work there in edu- 
cating colored young men and women was in the 
line of the interests and labors of all his past life ; 
and so although the institution was in a precarious 
condition through the withdrawal of Government aid, 
he concluded that God wished him to labor there. 
He removed to Washington with his family in the 
fall, and at once threw himself into this new work. 
As President he had much to do with the financial 
afifiairs of the University ; and here he showed rare 
discretion and ability. The confidence of the Gov- 
ernment was speedily restored, the debt was paid, 
and the institution placed on a sound and perma- 
nent basis. In all his dealings also with the 
Faculties of the various departments, Normal, Col- 
lege, Industrial, Medical, Law and Theological, he 
won the respect and love of all, although he often 
was obliged to rule contrary to the judgment of 
many of his associates. The students knew him 
principally as an instructor in the College and The- 
ological Departments, and as a preacher. Every 
Sunday afternoon he preached in the Chapel. They 
were strong, practical, faithful sermons directed to 
the needs of the young men and women under him. 
He hid nothing from them in respect to the faults 
peculiar to their race. He pointed out to them also 
their strong points ; and delighted to open up to 
their vision the great opportunities of an educated 



28 

colored man to-day. Especially were his Baccalau- 
reate sermons directed to this end. He dealt with 
them like a faithful father. It was his own opinion 
that he accomplished as much with the students by 
his preaching, as he did by his work in the class room. 
Dr. Patton filled so many positions that it is im- 
possible for me to speak definitely of each one ; but 
it may be remarked that his work as a teacher was 
in no respect behind what he accomplished as a 
preacher, an editor, and a business manager.* Dur- 
ing these same years he was also deeply interested 
in all that was going on in the outside world, and 
especially in the Congregational denomination. 
He was a frequent writer for the New Englander 
and Yale Review, He served on the Commission 
appointed by the National Council to draw up a 
new creed to be recommended to the churches. 
He will be remembered by many as an earnest ad- 
vocate of toleration in the American Board for 
those who hold what are known as the Andover 
views, although he himself did not take their theo- 
logical position. To omit any mention of this 
would be an injustice to him, so deeply did he feel 
on this subject. But having lived to see many 
other changes in institutional policies, one notable 
change being in the American Board itself, he was 
confident that time would set this matter right also. 



* It was while President of Howard University that Dr. Patton 
received from his Alma Mater the degree of LL.D., having received 
the degree of D.D. some years before. 



29 

Many others will remember him for the delightful 
sermons he wrote every spring while President of 
the University, and preached during the summer on 
his visits North. * 

Domestic affliction overtook him again while in 
Washington, through the death of his wife in the 
fall of 1880. The loneliness and sorrow which 
came from this loss, together with the scattering 
of his children and the increasing cares of the 
University, which he felt more as his years ad- 
vanced, led him to resign his position after twelve 
years of service. His wish was to spend the re- 
mainder of the life that God should give him, in 
comparative retirement, making his home with his 
two youngest children here in Westfield, and en- 
gaging in literary work and in general usefulness as 
there might be opportunity. 

To say farewell to Washington tried him sorely, 
and those parting occasions with the University and 
the Church which he had attended partook of such 
a tender nature as to seem now almost prophetic. 
The testimonials which came to him from the Trus- 
tees and from the Faculty of the University, with 

* The subjects of these last sermons reveal the wide scope of his 
mind, his courage, and his progressiveness. They were such as 
these : " Ease is a sign of power " ; " Religious Cant " ; "Count 
Tolstoi and the Sermon on the Mount " ; " Alleged Melancholy of 
the Cultivated Classes " ; " The Old and the New" ; The Sceptical 
Argument from the Vastness of the Universe " ; Seeming Contra- 
dictions in the Divine Character "("God is Love". — "God is a 
consuming fire".) "Weak Points of the Evangelical Faith, as it 
is Commonly Stated"; "The Protective Power of Christian 
Hope " ; " How to make the Heavenly Life seem more real." 



30 

the remarks which were made at the last prayer 
meeting of the church were to him overwhelm- 
ing. As he read one of those testimonials, an 
exceedingly generous recognition of his work, 
he exclaimed : " This is almost too much for 
a poor, imperfect mortal. It describes what I 
wanted and aimed to be ; and I thank God, if 
my colleagues and friends think that I have made 
any approximation to so high a standard, while I 
feel humbled by my knowledge of my own short- 
comings." * 

You all know the end ; the two happy Sundays 
which he spent with us here, and how the Lord 
suddenly called him to Himself on the morning of 
the very day that his connection with Howard 
University ceased — December 31, 1889. 

He was in his sixty-ninth year when he died, not 
a very old man ; and yet his was in a remarkable 
degree a finished life, so much so, that even the 
deepest sorrow cannot hide the beauty of the 
departure. And I think those who have lived near- 
est to Dr. Patton can testify that his life was 
finished within, as well as without. For back of all 
the work he accomplished ,in the various positions 
he filled, back of it all and grander far was the 
character of the man. He loved character. He 
impressed it upon his children : he preached it in 
his sermons, he exemplified it in his life. Some 
there are who knowing him in youth and in the 

*See Appendix II. 



31 

ripeness of his last years, appreciate what may seem 
strange to many that his life was a spiritual warfare 
from beginning to end, and that if toward the close 
of life he was possessed of rare symmetry and beauty 
of character, it was because lovingly he had sub- 
mitted to the educating and refining influences of 
his heavenly Father. In no direction perhaps was 
this more apparent than in the mellowing and 
sweetening of his feelings toward the opinions and 
short-comings of others. A strong sense of justice 
and righteousness he always had ; but more and 
more was this tempered with the element of love 
and forbearance as life advanced. 

He was pre-eminently a man of prayer. His fifty- 
three years after conversion were a constant walk 
with God, a looking to his Heavenly Father for 
guidance at every step in life. Moreover he had an 
intensely reverent spirit. He regarded God with 
an awe and affection that were inexpressible. It is 
not without significance that his prayers in public 
almost invariably began with adoration of God for 
his majesty, his holiness, and his love ; while noth- 
ing grieved him more than a light or trivial refer- 
ence to divine things. 

He was a liberal man, giving abundantly of his 
substance unto the Lord. He was a remarkably 
conscientious man. Those who have ever had a 
glimpse into his method of work have been im- 
pressed by his systematic quality and his incessant 
industry. With all his duties in the various posi- 



32 

tions which he held and the distractions of a 
large family, he yet found time to do an 
enormous amount of reading and to keep him- 
self informed of what other people were doing 
in spheres different from his own. He was nat- 
urally somewhat reserved in his bearing toward 
others, but this did not keep from the sight of 
those who knew him well his really genial and 
warm nature, while to those closest to him he 
was simply running over with good cheer and 
mirth. 

No one who knew him well can have failed to 
notice the extreme simpHcity of his life, his mod- 
esty and even self-depreciation, and consequent dis- 
like of pushing himself. He who was so energetic 
in fighting the battles of others, was very slow to 
urge a claim of his own. The great stands that he 
has made in public life have not been in the remot- 
est degree from a desire to be prominent, but have 
been the result of his devotion to the truth, and his 
entire consecration to duty arising from strong con- 
victions. If he was ever the first upon his feet in a 
public assembly, and energetic in his opposition to 
any measure, it was because he literally spake as he 
was moved. On this account it befell him on not a 
few occasions to express sentiments which others 
felt, but dared not utter. And some on this account 
have thought him naturally severe ; but O, how 
positively his friends can testify that such was not 
the case ! There was no truer or more sympathiz- 



•33 

ing friend of a just cause than he, no kindlier per- 
son to go to in trouble. 

If there was ever any antagonism in him, it was 
to men's ideas and not to themselves. It was char- 
acteristic of him to notice and call attention to the 
good qualities of men and their work, especially 
when others were expressing nothing but blame. 
And as for those who seemed his bitterest enemies, 
they all received such loving consideration from him 
that many came to learn in that way for the first 
time the rare personal kindliness of his nature. 
His heart was full of love as his face was radiant with 
the joy of fellowship with Christ ; and this it was 
that kept him young to the last day — yes, even to 
the last hour of his life. He was pushing one of 
the little girls of our congregation up the hill on her 
tricycle when the summons came to him from on 
high. That was the last act of his life ; and his last 
uttered regret was that he had not been able to 
push her all the way. Let the record rest with 
that ; it was typical of what his life had been. 

In telling thus simply the story of my father's 
life I have been obliged to omit much of interest ; 
but I hope and pray that what has been told will 
lead some here to greater consecration to the Mas- 
ter, and draw others into the blessed service in 
which his life was spent. 



APPENDIX 



I. 

A FEW additional details in regard to the death 
of Dr. Patton and an account of the funeral 
service will be of interest to his friends. Dr. Pat- 
ton apparently was in the best of health until within 
a few hours of his death. He was with his son, Rev. 
C. H. Patton, on Monday afternoon, Dec. 30th, and 
walked briskly with him to the post-office, where 
they parted. He then started for the house of his 
daughter, Mrs. Martin Welles. On the way he was 
helping a little girl on a tricycle up a hill when he 
was taken with shortness of breath. He continued 
a short distance with difficulty, but finally was 
obliged to call to a passing carriage to take him 
home. After reaching his daughter's house he ral- 
lied and conversed freely. He was in no pain. At 
nine o'clock in the evening he was carried up- 
stairs, and at ten o'clock was resting quietly, 
except for labored breathing and occasional cough- 
ing ; but at midnight he grew worse rapidly. Severe 
congestion of the lungs set in and deprived him 
of breath at one o'clock. He was conscious to the 
end. 

The funeral service was held in the Congrega- 
tional Church in Westfield, N. J., on the afternoon 
of January 3, 1890. Dr. Patton's five sons and a 
nephew bore the body into the church, which had 
been trimmed with flowers by the young ladies of 
the parish. The church was filled with the relatives 
and friends of Dr. Patton, who came together to 
thank God for all that his life had been to them and 



37 

to the world. Rev. S. M. Newman, D.D., his 
pastor, who conducted the service, spoke particu- 
larly of the unabated youthfulness of Dr. Fatten, 
and of his success in carrying over into each period 
of his life all that was best and most characteristic 
of the periods coming before. 

Rev. W. H. Ward, D.D., of the Independent, a 
friend of many years' standing, alluded to the im- 
portant work of Dr. Patton as Pastor, Editor, and 
College President, and dwelt particularly upon his 
progressiveness, the breadth and liberality of his 
character. Rev. M. E. Strieby, D.D., told of his 
own intimate relations to Dr. Patton in connection 
with the American Missionary Association, charac- 
terizing his work for the Negro race as the chief 
feature of his life. The service closed with a song 
of triumph. Dr. Patton's favorite hymn : 

" Ten thousand times ten thousand, 

In sparkling raiment bright, 
The armies of the ransomed saints 

Throng up the steeps of light : 
'Tis finished, all is finished, 

Their fight with death and sin : 
Fling open wide the golden gates, 

And let the victors in." 

On the following day the remains were conveyed 
to Hartford, Conn., and deposited in the Spring 
Grove Cemetery, by the side of those of his two 
wives and his two children, who had died in infancy. 
The prayer at the grave was by Rev. J. H, Twichell, 
of Hartford. 



IL 



Testimonial from the Faculty of the College and Pre- 
paratory Departments of Howard University, 

Rev. Wm. W. Patton, D.D., LL.D., having 
severed his connection with Howard University, 
and being now about to retire from immediate par- 
ticipation in its, concerns as President, the Faculty 
of the College and the Preparatory Departments de- 
sire, at this time, to put on record an expression of 
its appreciation of the retiring Executive and of the 
circumstances attending his departure from the 
University. 

We have always found in Dr. Patton, a man of 
exalted excellence of personal character, of broad 
and liberal mind, of high and varied culture, of con- 
siderate, clear and generous judgment, of great 
considerateness and sympathy, and of singular apt- 
ness for the important work he was called to do. 
In him also we have found, upon occasion, an ap- 
preciative friend and adviser, and it is with a sense 
of personal bereavement, that we are compelled 
to consent to a severance of the existing relation- 
ship. 

For more than twelve years Dr. Patton has been 
the administrative head of the University, presid- 
ing in the councils of the Board of Trustees and 
participating actively in the instruction of classes in 
the Theological and the College Departments. By 
his able management he has shaped and adminis- 
tered a policy which, from a condition of affairs 



39 

that might well have been considered alarming and 
desperate, the University has arisen to an extent un- 
exampled in its previous history, to a position of 
eminence and power in the community and in the 
country at large, gratifying to all its friends and 
full of hope for the future. Within and without, 
so far as known, essential harmony and hopefulness 
everywhere prevails. 

At the age of nearly seventy years, after a long 
public life as preacher, editor, teacher, and Univer- 
sity President, Dr. Patton, looking out from the 
sunshine of vanishing years, over a checkered and 
useful life, is permitted to see many good works 
done for the benefit of humanity, and, not the least 
of them, the. upbuilding and enlargement of Howard 
University. We congratulate him upon the success- 
ful outcome of his busy life, and as he voluntarily 
lays down active, official duties, and betakes himself 
to the enjoyment of well-earned leisure among his 
children and friends, we invoke upon him the bless- 
ings of Heaven. 



III. 



if trjst Congreeational Cl^urcl^ 

OF CHICAGO 



Xribute to ctie memory of 
REV. WILLIAM WESTON PATTON, D.D. 

PASTOR OF THE CHURCH 
FROM JANUARY 8, 1857 TO JULY 16, 1867 



ADOPTED JANUARY FIFTH 
MDCCCXC 



42 

To the First Congregational Church and Society : 

'XT' OUR Committee appointed to prepare a statement 

and resolution on the death of Rev. William W. 

Patton, D.D., LL.D., would submit the following report : 

The Rev. William Weston Patton, D.D., LL.D., 
was born in New York City, Oct. 19, 1821, his father 
being an eminent minister of the Gospel. He graduated 
at the University of the City of New York, in 1839, and 
at Union Theological Seminary, New York, in 1842. He 
became Pastor of Phillips Congregational Church, Boston, 
Mass., in 1843, and of the Fourth Church, Hartford, 
Conn., in 1846. In 1857 he came to Chicago to take the 
pastoral oversight of this church and society. He was 
already known as a fearless friend of liberty, and his well- 
known position on the question of slavery made him es- 
pecially acceptable to this Church. As pastor of this 
Church, Dr. Patton soon acquired a national reputation 
as a champion of the rights of the slave, and as the 
clouds gathered over the Republic, and finally the storm 
burst in the terrors of Civil war, he was among the first 
to see and say that the Freedom of the Slaves should be 
the first fruits of the Harvest of Death. He took a lead- 
ing part in bringing about President Lincoln's Proclama- 
tion of Emancipation. During the war for liberty he 
was Vice-President of the Northwestern Sanitary Com- 
mission, and in its healing service visited the Eastern and 
Western armies ; he used his pen also vigorously in the 
service of the suffering soldier and the slave. When the 
cruel war was over, Dr. Patton continued his deep inter- 
est in the negro, now emancipated from one bondage, 
but ready to fall in his helplessness into another ; to pro- 



43 

mote the cause of the Freedmen he visited Europe in 
1866. His broad humanitarian sympathies ever led him 
into the wide field of national movements ; hence it 
seemed quite in harmony with his life work that he 
should become editor of the Advance in 1867, a Congre- 
gational paper, founded in Chicago to advocate through- 
out the Northwest those principles of Christian freedom 
and brotherhood so dear to his heart. In 1877, Dr. Pat- 
ton took another step most natural for him, the life-long 
advocate of the enslaved African ; he became President 
of Howard University, an institution of learning founded 
in the national capital for the higher education of the ne- 
gro in science and letters, in medicine, law and theology. 
Here he labored till the end of the year 1889. He had 
just resigned his position ; his successor was ready to 
take up the work ; the time for rest had come, a double 
rest, and on the last day of the year, the sad news came 
that Dr. Patton had died very unexpectedly at the home 
of one of his children, of congestion of the lungs. 

In this brief statement of the activity of our former 
Pastor, we have put in the foremost place his efforts in 
behalf of liberty ; we have done so because that seemed 
to give the key-note to his character. But Dr. Patton was 
a man of wide sympathies, and as Pastor of this Church he 
exercised a far-reaching influence in every direction. He 
built up this Church in numbers and character. During 
the eleven years of his pastorate the membership in- 
creased from one-hundred and ninety-eight to 
five-hundred and forty-two. He was a fearless preach- 
er of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come. 
He declared the whole counsel of God as he found it in the 
Scriptures. He was a clear and instructive preacher, out- 



44 

spoken in behalf of what he considered right, loyal to his 
Church,but no time-server, no servant of expediency. Such 
a man commanded the respect of his own congregation,won 
and retained the confidence of his brethren, so that he 
was soon regarded as the leading minister of our denom- 
ination in the Northwest ; and was held in honor among 
all the churches. He soon saw the great importance of 
a well-educated ministry for the West, and at once took 
a deep interest in the Chicago Theological Seminary. 
For eighteen years, 1859 to 1877, he was a leading and in- 
fluential member of its Board of Directors and its Execu- 
tive Committee. He gave a course of lectures in the 
Seminary on Modern Infidelity, during the years 1874 
and 1875. He showed his interest in the Institution also 
by a gift of $1,000, the proceeds of which are to be used 
for binding books and pamphlets. 

Dr. Patton also exerted a wide influence by his writ- 
ings. His first work was addressed to young men, for 
whom he always cherished a warm affection. But his 
most successful book was that on Prayer^ and Its Re- 
markable Answers. Here is the source of power and 
strength in which he ever sought by precept and exam- 
ple to lead his people. Some of the answers to prayer 
recorded by him were given to him by members of this 
Church, and the testimony of their hearts to the blessed 
help of God in time of need was a great joy to the Pas- 
tor as he heard such things in his visits from house to 
house. 

He was a man of freedom, of broad Christian charity, 
a true patriot, a lover of education, a strong preacher, a 
faithful pastor, a wise counsellor, a friend indeed of all 
that were laboring and heavy laden. In view of these 



45 

things, which the older members of this Church know 
from experience of Dr. Patton as Pastor, and which all 
have heard of as part of the history of this church, there- 
fore be it 

Resolved, i. That this Church having heard of the 
recent death of Rev. Dr. Patton, formerly their Pastor, do 
hereby express their deep estimate of him as a Minister 
of the Gospel, and a man of blameless life and great 
Christian activity. 

2. That we express to his family our sincere and 
hearty sympathy with them in their bereavement, with 
the sure hope that the God of all comfort will make this 
affliction also work together with all His dealings for 
their good. 

3. That the clerk of the Church be instructed to 
spread this statement and these resolutions upon the Re- 
cords of this Church, and to send a copy of the same to 
each of Dr. Patton's children and to the Advance. 

Edward P. Goodwin, 
Wm. W. Farwell, 
George N. Boardman, 
James H. Pearson. 

Adopted by vote of the Church, Sabbath, January 5, 
1890. 

Attest : 

Theo. F. Bliss, Clerk. 



Cl^e ^^pme Iffe of ^t. ^atton 



"TTOU are indeed to be congratulated upon the life and 
A memory of such a father. It was an honor to have 
known him, how much more to have borne his name, and 
been one of his household. We never really knew your father 
until he came to stay with us a little time, and, though it was 
but for a couple of months, we both grew to love him dearly." 

This extract from the letter of a friend gives ex- 
pression to thoughts shared by others who have 
come into more intimate relations with our dear 
father, and we, his children, feel that even this 
simple memorial of him would be incomplete with- 
out more particular reference to his private life 
than could appropriately be made in the preceding 
sermon. It thus seems fitting to add a few pages 
for the purpose of rounding out this other, but no 
less important side of a well balanced life. 

It is surely not a light thing that a man, honored 
for his wide usefulness and powerful influence in 
public life, should be equally loved and respected in 
his own household. At home our father belonged 
to us. He was naturally domestic in his tastes, and 
was never happier than when quietly with his 
family. To the casual acquaintance he might seem 
distant ; to the opponent in a controversy he might 
seem severe ; but to us he was always the same 
bright companion, with whom we were allowed the 



48 

greatest familiarity. He» was fond of witticisms, 
small jokes, rhyming jingles, and nicknames, and a 
deal of passing nonsense, and was also quite ready 
to enjoy the fun when it happened to be at his own 
expense, turning off such a hit with a characteristic 
" hm, hm," of appreciation, and a puckering of his 
already small eyes, that meant more than a hearty 
laugh in those of the jovial build. This sense of 
grim humor at his own predicament often served to 
carry him through difficulties which might otherwise 
have weighed him to the ground. It led him to 
make the best of everything, as for instance in 
trivial matters, such as forgetting to mail a letter, 
he would often say, " Now I shall punish myself by 
going clear back to do it," in such happy ways 
ignoring anything like impatience. He seemed 
always to be the same, no matter what happened, 
and was a thorough disbeliever in moodiness. We 
never had to wait for him to be in a good humor to 
grant a request, nor was he put out by interruptions, 
and there never was a better man to do errands. 

Of him as a husband I can only say that he and 
our mother were truly one, and I do not remember 
ever to have heard an unpleasant word of difference 
between them. Nothing will show this better than 
the following letter written about a month before 
our mother's death : 

" Washington, D. C, Oct. i. 1880. 
My Dear Wife : 
It is twenty-nine years to-day since I first had the right to 



49 

call you by this precious title. The time sounds long, but yet 
seems very short to look back upon. And this shortness is 
due largely to the pleasantness of the experience during these 
years ; and that again is due to you. What a comfort and a 
blessing you have been to me, and what a rallying-centre in the 
household for all the children ! Surely you are one of the most 
popular of mothers, as well as one of the best of wives, and so 
the unanimous vote of the family has long been, that you were 
the " Dear Woman." It is occasion for regret that our wed- 
ding anniversary of late years so often finds us separated, and 
that this year it for the first time finds you an invalid. But we 
will be grateful to God for His many and long-continued 
mercies, and we will have faith that He will order well our 
future lot, and spare us to each other and to our children for 
many happy days to come. With His blessing all will be right. 
Your loving husband, 

Wm. W. Patton." 

The secret of our happy home lies in that last 
sentence. The underlying thought there was the 
acknowledgment of God's blessings and the desire 
to live worthily of their continuance. Religion was 
not a theory simply, but was carried into the small- 
est details of life. The children might push their 
fun to the highest degree of noise and confusion^ 
and nothing would be said; but one word of irrev- 
erence brought such a reproof from Father,^ that we 
could never forget it, or wish to have it repeated. 
The early morning hours were never so busy or 
hurried as to omit the family worship, and at that 
time the special needs of each day were brought to 
the Lord; the school duties of the children, any 
trying experience that lay before some one of the 



so 

amily, the journey of a departing member were 
particularly mentioned, so that there was made 
upon us all an impression of personal responsibility 
to God. Among our sweetest memories are the 
Sunday evenings, which always found us singing, 
and which closed with prayer by each member of 
the family in turn. In later years, when distance 
from church prevented attendance in the evening, 
Father always read aloud from some recent work 
bearing on the religious topics of the day. These 
readings were also counted a privilege by friends 
who not infrequently joined us in this Sabbath hour, 
and who valued the discussions which often fol- 
lowed. 

The second subject of importance which our 
father instilled into our minds was that, next to 
Christianity, education was the highest thing to be 
sought. He often gave, as an explanation why we 
could not have all we wished, that we must wait 
until he had finished educating his children before 
other things could have their place. 

Father was a man of incessant activity ; he never 
spoke of being busy or overworked, never men- 
ioned his need of a vacation, but was always 
occupied. Every moment was turned to account ; 
all the odd ones being devoted to reading. While 
others were sitting about, waiting for a meal or a 
carriage, he had quietly pulled out a paper or book 
and was reading. His daughters would often demur 
at his doing this while waiting for a concert to be- 



51 

gin, but he only smiled and kept right on. Of 
course this constant application enabled him to 
master a vast amount of literature, and all branches 
seemed to possess nearly equal interest. He had a 
large library, and I once asked him if he had read 
every book in it, and, with the exception of the 
encyclopaedias, he said he had. Indeed it almost 
seemed that he had no need of encyclopaedias, for 
his fund of knowledge on all subjects appeared 
almost inexhaustible. A graduate of Howard Uni- 
versity says, " I often went to Dr. Patton with 
questions which- others failed to answer satisfactorily, 
and not only received an immediate and full answer, 
but it seemed as if he were waiting for that particu- 
lar question to be asked." 

He never appeared to read poetry, and yet he 
knew well where to find almost any quotation. He 
was very fond of a story, and in reading aloud, 
would be deeply moved by a touching incident, and 
pause to gain his composure; or he would enter 
into the love scenes with great zest. A moment 
later the novel would be laid aside and we would 
find him deep in theology. The articles on birds in 
the various magazines always had a fascination for 
him. Something of a scientist too, he was often 
referring to books on geology, biology, etc. He 
had collected quite an interesting cabinet in this 
line. 

But if there was not a book at hand Father could 
always find something else to do. Once when 



52 

taking a trip in the White Mountains, while the 
coach waited for a change of horses, he had tied a 
bent pin to a string (he was never without a bunch 
of it in his pocket), had scratched up a worm some- 
where, and had caught a trout in a road-side brook. 

Fishing was his delight, and he took into his 
plans, from year to year, the brooks and the very 
stones where he expected to find the best trout. 
On one of his expeditions up a brook in the Adi- 
rondacks, night overtook him while crossing from 
one trail to another. He carefully felt his way in 
the gathering darkness, until further progress was- 
impossible, and then selected a large tree as his 
resting-place until dawn. The inevitable newspaper 
was with him, and this time served for a protection, 
buttoned over his chest. When quite stiff with 
cold, he went through a vigorous course of gymnas- 
tics or counted a few steps from the tree, returning 
to it after each trip. He often described his sensa- 
tions afterwards, and how he lay wondering what 
his children would say if they knew he was spending 
the night alone in the forest. 

His last adventure of the kind, I judge, had been 
when, as a boy at boarding-school, he ran away and 
tried to walk home, but was not sorry to be picked 
up late in the evening by his teacher, who found 
him shivering in a ditch. That may have been the 
beginning of his pedestrian trips, which did not 
always have so untimely an end. I do not doubt 
that his abundant health and spirits were due to 



53 

his walking whenever it was possible. He averaged 
several miles a day, almost never riding, and was 
certainly one person for whom the " City of Magnifi- 
cent Distances" had no weariness. His light elastic 
step was noticeable to everyone, and one of the pro- 
fessors used to say to him, that he was the youngest 
member of the Faculty, judging from the way in 
which he could outwalk them all. 

Our little cottage in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, 
which we occupied for twelve summers, was a 
blessing to the whole family, and afforded oppor- 
tunities for the out-door exercise which Father so 
enjoyed. Sailing, rowing, fishing, bathing, hunting, 
and, for one or two winters, skating filled many hours 
of this country life, and were woven into editorials 
written from the " Editor's Easy Chair " which oc- 
cupied a window overlooking the beautiful lake, 
with its ever-changing lights and shadows. Upon 
one occasion he nearly ended his life in the waters 
of this lake by the capsizing of a yacht, but after 
clinging to the boat for some time, the party was 
rescued, and father found the brisk walk of three 
miles home sufBcient to save him from any ill 
effects. 

There was no one in the family who could write 
so good a letter as Father. His four pages of fine 
distinct writing had packed into them every little 
event of interest, and bits of every-day news that 
few men would think of, or take the trouble to 
write ; and those who received from him letters of 



54 

sympathy at the death of a wife or child found that 
he had a wealth of tenderness and fellow-feeling 
that brought them unusual comfort. 

I may add that Father's correspondence, like his 
other duties, was never behindhand ; indeed, prompt- 
ness was in the very fibre of his nature. His accounts 
always balanced before he left them, and upon the 
last day of the year we often rallied him upon 
sitting up all night to find the missing cent. To 
those who knew this characteristic, it was not the 
least of the coincidences of his death that he had 
just finished making up his books for the year, and 
summarizing his annual expenses, before leaving 
the house for the last time. 

This method was also carried into his benevolence. 
He considered that to give systematically, and from 
principle, was the only true way. In 1866, when he 
went abroad, he left with the church Treasurer 
drafts upon the Trustees for the monthly collections 
as they came in order ; which is an illustration of 
his careful planning to meet such obligations before 
all others. Accurate, business-like, methodical, 
conscientious, he wa's a man of truth, a man to 
trust, and if his friends missed in him a certain 
suavity of manner which some men possess, they 
certainly learned to value a commendation from one 
who would never give it unless deserved. 

Our eldest brother speaks as follows, adding an 
incident which ante-dates my memory: ** Father's 
unwavering adherence to principle all through his 



55 

public and private life, tempered by justice and 
consideration for others, particularly after the first 
few years of his public life, was one of the most 
marked of his many fine qualities. Just one inci- 
dent will show his charity for others, when principle 
compelled a different course of action for himself. 
Between 1857 and i860, when the horse cars were 
first introduced in Chicago, a public meeting was 
called in Bryan Hall by the religious people of the 
City, to protest against their use on Sunday. After 
nearly all the ministers in the City had spoken 
against Sunday travel, father, at the very end of the 
evening, and the last one to speak, rose, and in a 
very quiet way said, that perhaps the meeting had 
been somewhat hastily called ; and suggested that 
some of those present might find after a little 
experience with Sunday travel, that all would not 
use the cars for the beer garden or purposes of 
pleasure, but that a large number might use them 
for attending church. He accordingly moved that 
the meeting adjourn without action, subject to the 
call of the chair, and await results, lest they might 
be a laughingstock to the non-church-going com- 
munity, and accomplish no good by too-hurried 
action. At the same time he predicted that the 
majority of those present, ministers included, would 
all be riding in the cars on Sunday. Suffice it to 
say the chairman never called the second meeting. 

Twenty years after, I was in Chicago and went to 
the South Side to hear Father preach. I with a 



56 

friend joined him after service, and returned with 
him to the West Side. We proposed taking the 
cars as the distance was long. His reply was, * As 
long as my health is good I prefer walking to tak- 
ing the car on Sunday.' He then told me that he 
had never ridden in a car on Sunday, and referring 
to the meeting in Bryan Hall, at which I was pres- 
ent, added that as far as he knew, although he was 
the only minister who did not oppose Sunday cars, he 
was the only one of them who had not used them 
on Sunday. Ever after this he kept to his principle, 
although he never objected to put Mother or any 
other lady in the car when she was unable to walk 
the distance. This same justice was always exer- 
cised toward his children without partiality." 

With children Father was kind and entertaining, 
and always showed great friendliness to the young 
visitors at our house, ever ready with some jocose 
word of welcome for his favorites. In his letters 

he often inquired for '' My friend. Miss ," or, 

*' My charming young friend, M." 

Father's love for animals was marked. His best 
stories to us, when we were children, were about 
his pet squirrels which he owned when a boy. He 
was always on the best of terms with the family cat, 
which always sat upon his knee while he read ; and 
his attachment to a canary was really touching. 
By patient training he taught the little thing to 
know him, and every noon, when lunch was served, 
Father's words, "You roguey Dickey," with a shake 



57 

of his finger, would send the bird into a flutter of 
excitement to have the cage door opened ; and after 
lunch a grand chase was kept up, and enjoyed by 
both, till Dick allowed himself to be caught and 
caressed. A tree-toad was the object of his care at 
another time, and as for the circus, well — the men- 
agerie would take him a long distance when other 
attractions failed. 

These are small matters to mention, but they go 
to show the naturalness and simplicity of a man 
whom many thought austere. He was so modest in 
speaking of himself even to his own family, that 
we were often in danger of underrating his character 
and ability, and have often needed others to tell 
us of his successes. 

He was so young in his feelings that it was hard 
for him to accept the fact of advancing years, and 
especially the changes of the last year were deeply 
felt. Two weeks before his death he wrote to a 
sister-in-law: *' It is a curious feeling to have, that 
one is about to complete his allotted life work ; that 
not much remains for future ambition or labor; that 
memory is to take the place of hope ; that one's 
interest is to be not in personal affairs, but in the 
affairs of one's children and grand-children. This 
would be sad indeed were it the whole case. But 
the eye of faith can still look forward, and see new 
openings in the eternal future, whither so many 
have preceded us, and where we believe, that they 
are busily and nobly at work." 



58 

The last days at the University were full of ap- 
preciation of the expressions of kind regard from his 
friends, and of pain at the laying aside of his beloved 
work. His letters spoke of its being almost too 
much for him to bear alone, with no loving wife by 
his side, as in former changes. One of the last nights, 
as he left the grounds, there was a remarkable sunset. 
The friend before referred to, writes : " He fairly 
awed us at the dinner-table by describing the beau- 
tiful sunset he had just witnessed from The Hill, 
and then adding, ' Just so the sun of my ofificial 
life is going down ; everything is peaceful and 
serene, I pass over everything in good order to my 
successor, but /am leaving.'" 

And thus it was, with a fuller meaning than he 
knew, upon the last day of his official life his sun 
went down. 

Caroline Patton Hatch. 



i^otjj to mafee t])t nejct life ^eem teal 

+ 

" But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait 
for it."— Romans VIII. 25. 

"pATIENCE under earthly trials becomes rational j/^, 

and easy, when faith in the eternal future is 
clear, and hope of immortality is buoyant. But 
with many it is difificult to make the next life seem 
real, so that the hope of it shall exert potent 
influence upon thought and conduct. How shall 
we become impressed by the unseen? How feel 
"the power of the world to come "? Allow me to 
offer a few practical suggestions, my Christian hear- 
ers, which may aid you in making the next world 
appear real. 

I. — As a necessary pre-requisite to everything 
else, You must keep your heart and life pure. 
Nothing so obscures the eternal future as sin, which 
is the practical denial of it. Sin surrounds the 
soul with an impenetrable mist. It begets doubt 
of every spiritual reality, from the fact of the next 
life, even up to the being of God himself ; 
turning the mind earthward in its vision, in its 
affections and in its pursuits, till reality seems to 
attach only to material objects, and hope to be 
warranted only as to temporal results. Ah ! there 
was fullness of meaning in the beatitude of Jesus : 



6o 

" Blessed are the pure in heart ; for they shall see 
God." The vision begins in this life. Purity so 
develops and exalts the spiritual side of our nature, 
that all objects to which it is directly related, stand 
out as real. It thus easily discerns God, as the 
embodiment of life ; as the fullness of being ; as the 
supreme reality in the universe ; as the perpetual 
presence of power, wisdom and love ; as the infinite 
Person ; as the Heavenly Father. That there 
should be a coming life, superior to the present, in 
which the now unseen God shall be better known, 
and this child soul shall have a blessed vision of 
the Father's glory, is a self-evident truth to the 
pure in heart. To doubt it would be to doubt one's 
own existence. 

2. — We shall be aided in a realization of the next 
life by thinking of it as a necessary development of the 
germs J and as a contrast to the limitations and evils of 
this present life. We learn many things ideally and 
we also gain the sense of their reality, by the law 
of development and contrast. A germ suggests 
coming growth and final fruit ; by contrast pain 
suggests pleasure; ignorance, knowledge; deform- 
ity, beauty ; limitations, expansion ; weariness, 
rest ; sin, purity. Have we an experience in 
this life of unripe results, unfinished beginnings, 
varied and most sorrowful evils? A healthful mind 
does not, on account of it, sink into pessimism, but 
simply says : " Yes, this is part of the reality, and it 
is sad, but the remainder of the reality is equally 



6i 



sure to come, or the universe has lost its balance^ 
and God is no longer God. 

We can say with the poet, Helen Marion Burn- 
side : 

"O toil and woe, O love and death ! 
At least we know ye are not all : 
Life but begins with passing breath, 
Fruition lies beyond the goal." 

Every instance of evil should assure you, my 
hearer, of the certainty of the coming good. A 
world of beginnings and half-achieved successes, of 
burdens and cares, of disorder and oppression, of 
pain and anguish, of weakness and ignorance, of 
disease and death, of deformity and sin, is like all 
first stages of existence, a prophecy as well as a 
present fact : — a prophecy of a second stage of con- 
summation, rest, comfort, order, justice, strength, 
knowledge, health, life, beauty and holiness. The 
law of necessary contrast makes the moral darkness 
suggest the certain approach of light ; as when the 
black midnight reminds us of the coming glories of 
the sunrise. And, similarly, our limitations in the 
experience of good also lead on our hopes to larger 
realizations. 

As this is the suggestion of nature and of rea- 
son, so is it everywhere the teaching and prac- 
tical influence of the Scriptures. ^* We are saved 
in hope," says the apostle in the context, and in 
another place : ** Now we see through a glass darkly ; 
but then face to face : now I know in part ; but 
then shall I know even as also I am known." Think 



62 

of this law of development and contrast, my Chris- 
tian brother, in hours when you are tempted to 
make too little of but partial success, or too much 
of present evils and limitations. " We walk by 
faith, not by sight." Reality does not depend upon 
present vision, but upon the laws of the system of 
which we are part ; upon the unalterable appoint- 
ment of God and the indestructible nature of things. 
Yet something of vision attends beginnings. By the 
discerning eye the fruit is seen in the bud. What 
we now know of God is assurance of fuller knowl- 
edge hereafter. Your earthly experience of Christ 
is earnest, not only of what you are yet to learn of 
him, but also of the reality of what has become the 
experience of those who are " absent from the body, 
and present with the Lord.'* This incipient stage 
points on to the promised consummation, when 
*' we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is." 
It is not more certain that the present is rooted in 
the past, than it is that the future is rooted in the 
present, as regards its developments and its victor- 
ies. And this because God includes both, and per- 
vades and enbosoms our entire being as immortals. 

"Oh, the little birds sang east, and the little birds sang west, 
And I smiled to think God's greatness flowed around our incom- 
pleteness, 

Round our restlessness his rest." 

Mrs. Browning. 

3. — You must think much of your personal relation 
to the next life. General ideas are apt to be dim 
and vague. They gain distinctness and vividness, 



63 

when applied to particular cases, and to personal 
experience. It is one thing for us to know that 
there is a continent of Europe, to which thousands 
resort for business and pleasure ; and it is quite 
another to purchase a ticket, and to make arrange- 
ments for the first time to take a steamer to Liver- 
pool or Havre. The moment this is done, Europe 
becomes a very definite continent, and is for us 
newly discovered, and replete with interest. And 
similarly we are not much affected by the general 
truth, that there is a next world ; or by the con- 
nected fact, that millions of men are passing thither ; 
or by the well-known certainty that all men will 
make the transition by death. Therefore, my 
hearer, reduce it to a particular and personal form. 
Say often to yourself, yea, carry the thought 
habitually in mind, that there is another world to 
which you are shortly going, possibly even in a few 
days. Make the idea pleasantly familiar that soon 
your permanent home will be in the invisible land. 
Avoid saying to yourself, ** Men are mortal," and 
say, *' /am mortal." Do not content yourself with 
remarking, when you see a consumptive near his 
end, that " our friend A. will not long be with us," 
but every day remind yourself that your own hour 
of leaving is fixed, as Paul did, when he said, " The 
time of my departure is at hand." Keep up this 
personal anticipation, as you would any contem- 
plated earthly journey, and the heavenly world, 
thus habitually considered as the approaching home 



64 

will become delightfully real to your apprehen- 
sion. 

4. — Make large use of the imagination; picture to 
yourself the next life. The importance of the im- 
agination as a faculty of the mind is underestimated 
in every department of thought and action. It is 
supposed to afford amusement only, as when we 
read a popular " work of fiction," and to be related 
chiefly to the unreal, as when we call something 
-' imaginary " ; whereas, its exercise is part of 
mental education and growth ; is a chief inspira- 
tion to effort, in every sphere of life ; is that which 
gives us hold of all future realities, earthly or 
heavenly ; and is the source which supplies a large 
part of our highest enjoyment. Our ideals of life 
are what regulate our ambitions and our efforts. 
We are inspired to produce what we have first con- 
ceived in imagination. The picture is in the artist's 
mind before it is on the canvas. The statue stands 
out in thought before it takes form in bronze or 
marble. We sometimes ridicule *' castles in the 
air," but no man ever accomplished much who had 
no night-visions and day-dreams of his coming 
future. To hope for anything and not to picture 
it ; how can that be possible ? To hope for it, and 
to make it live constantly in the imagination ; how 
can that fail to give it pleasing reality ? 

The Bible applies this principle to our relation to 
the next world. It bids us conceive of a definite some- 
thing set before us, for which we are to strive, as the 



65 

ancient runner in the Grecian games did for the ex- 
pected garland that was now at the goal to be 
placed upon his brow. *' Forgetting those things 
which are behind, and reaching forth unto those 
things which are before," said Paul, *' I press to- 
ward the mark for the prize of the high calling of 
God in Christ Jesus." But could he do this with- 
out a glowing imagination? Did he not picture to 
himself " the glory which should follow " the labors 
and sufferings of this present life ? Surely he did, 
and we too must take the truth about the next life 
out of abstract ideas and put it into pictorial im- 
ages. We shall no doubt be crude in the artistic 
result ; but any result that shall give influential 
form to the truth is of value. This is not only a 
necessity of our nature, but is clearly warranted by 
the methods of inspiration. For the Bible pictures 
heaven to the imagination, as well as asserts its ex- 
istence. We are not, indeed, to insist upon a literal 
interpretation of the quite variant descriptions 
given, now of a temple and then of a city, now of 
a feast and then of a worshiping assembly, now of 
calm rest, then of rapturous pleasures, and again of 
noble activities ; but we are to accept of these im- 
ages for present use, to their fullest extent. Eliza- 
beth Stuart Phelps was right in her criticised " Gates 
Ajar," in this respect — right philosophically and 
Scripturally. There are future realities which have 
a substantial correspondence, of some kind, to these 
representations set before our imagination ; and 



66 

God wishes us to gain instruction, inspiration and 
comfort from these earthly analogies and prophetic 
symbols. 

Be not afraid then, to visit, in thought, the 
New Jerusalem, the holy city, to pass thro' its 
gates of pearl, to traverse its golden streets, to 
walk daily on the banks of the heavenly river, to 
partake of the fruit of the tree of life, to listen to 
the song of the redeemed, to gaze on the glory of 
Him who sitteth upon the throne and on the Lamb. 
You will thus grow familiar with the place and its 
inhabitants, and will come to a habitual sense of the 
thorough reality of the coming life. The eye of 
faith, aided by the glass of holy imagination, will 
be so clear that you will seem to gaze as in open, 
present vision, until your soul is on fire, with eager 
desire to dwell therein. 

" Thy walls are made of precious stone ; 
Thy bulwarks diamond square ; 
Thy gates are all of orient pearl : 
O God ! if 1 were there ! " 

5. — Accustom yourself to think of a transition to 
the next life as perfectly natural, when viewed in its 
higher relations. We start back from death as 
from something unnatural. And such it is, in its 
outward material aspect, in its lower relations, in 
those evil accompaniments due to sin. For plainly 
it puts an end to earthly activity ; it destroys the 
bodily organization ; it substitutes foul and un- 
sightly corruption for the attractions of beauty ; it 



67 

removes from sight those whom we love, and they 
leave no trace of continued being. But these are 
only part of the facts. They are as the skin and 
shell of the worm left behind after the beauteous 
butterfly has taken his flight. The worm might 
count it unnatural to be withdrawn from its re- 
pasts on leaves and from its accustomed paths along 
the twigs and branches; but to the naturalist pre- 
cisely the opposite is seen to be true. He, taking 
in the entire range of the creature's being, declares 
that it is simply natural for the creeping worm to 
disappear forever from the plant, and in quite an- 
other sphere, in the regions of air, to become the 
winged butterfly. Similarly, a scientific angel (and 
such angels there are) writing the natural history 
of man for the instruction of some other race, might 
state that first he is born into the planet Earth, and 
there has an initial stage of growth, but that after 
a few years he lays aside his earthly body and 
passes to the higher stage of spirit existence. 

The Bible tries to familiarize us with this true con- 
ception of our nature, and to teach us that Christ has 
redeemed our whole being, soul and body, so that 
the apparent ravages of death are more than compen- 
sated in the glories of the resurrection state. Culti- 
vate then the habitual thought that, as on earth 
your infancy passed into youth, and your youth into 
manhood, so this mortal form of existence naturally 
conducts to the immortal form ; that as you were 
born into this life, so you must be born into the 



68 

next life ; and that what we call death here, they 
call birth in the heavenly world. The poet Rosetti, 
in his exquisite production of imagination, *' The 
Blessed Damosel," pictures five companions of the 
virgin Mary, of whom he says : 

" Circlewise sit they, with bound locks 
And foreheads garlanded, 
Into the fine cloth, white, like flame, 
Weaving the golden thread 
To fashion birth robes for them 
, Who are just born, being dead." 

This view of your relation to the future, if cher- 
ished continually, will give great definiteness and 
reality to the coming life. 

6. — Give its due weight to the superiority in num- 
bers of those who have already made the transition 
to the next life^ and to the fact suggested by this 
vastness of number. It is a very literal truth, we 
utter sometimes, on the death of a man, when we 
say that " he has joined the majority." Yes, appear- 
ances deceive us. We look around us, where we 
dwell, we travel in foreign lands, we read the census 
returns of various countries, we notice the computa- 
tion of geographers that the population of the 
world is one billion five hundred millions, and earth 
seems full. The human race appears to be here ; to be 
at home on this planet. And so, when men die, one by 
one, they seem to be solitary exceptions, sadly 
leaving the human family and its habitation. But not 
so. The vast majority is not here, but yonder in 
the spirit-realm, and they, rather than the few mil- 



69 

lions now on earth, are the human race. It is we 
who are the fractional part, and are separated from 
our race, being but an inconsiderable minority, one 
fiftieth, perhaps only one one-hundredth of the 
whole. When we die we join the race, instead of 
separating from it. Think often of this, my hearer. 
You are now one of the children left behind by the 
family, who are congregated elsewhere. But you 
will soon join the more than one hundred thou- 
sand millions of fellow men who now inhabit the 
unseen land, of which the poet has said : 

" Earth has hosts, but thou canst show 
Many a million for her one ; 
Through thy gates the mortal flow 
Has for countless years rolled on," 

Croly. 

If this be true, what significant implications go 
with the fact ! For these millions cannot be a mere 
idle, impassive, unorganized crowd of spirits, an 
aggregation of shadows. They are full of living 
activities. They carried with them thought, feeling 
and will. They have stores of knowledge, large and 
varied experience, definite character, wondrous pow- 
ers of action, social natures, habits of organization, 
high aspirations, grand ambitions, capacities of ex- 
alted enjoyment. These qualities stand related to 
corresponding opportunities, and imply action, and, 
with such numbers and ages of time, imply action 
on a vast scale and for important ends. The next 
world must be a very busy as well as a very populous 
world, full of plans, efforts and results, so that life 



70 

there must be more rather than less real than it is 
here. When a youth leaves the small circle under 
the parental roof, or when a student quits the larger 
circle of his schoolmates, and goes out into the busy 
scenes of earth, to act his part in new relations, does 
not his life take on added reality? So, my hearer, 
will it be with you, when you shall emerge from 
mortal childhood, and shall graduate from this 
earthly school, and shall take your place with the 
adult portion of the human race amid the settled 
pursuits of eternity. Real life will then begin. 

7. — And now, apply the principle before recom- 
mended, of bringing the general down to the particular, 
and picture to yourself the individual persons whom 
you know to have entered upon the next life. Follow 
them there, and imagine them pursuing some active 
course of life correspondent with their earthly pur- 
suits ; engaged in observation and reflection, in 
study and effort, in individual enterprises and in 
cooperative labors, developing and applying the 
powers which they displayed here below. Do not 
think of a nameless crowd of good men dwelling 
there, but of particular persons of whom you have 
read and in whose experience you have been inter- 
ested. Say to yourself, there are the early saints ; 
Abel and Enoch and Noah ; also Abraham and 
Moses and David ; Elijah and Isaiah and Daniel. 
There, too, are the NewTestament worthies, Simeon 
and Anna; Mary and John the Baptist ; Peter and 
John and Paul. There are Clemens, Polycarp and 



71 

Augustine; Luther, Calvin and Knox; Wesley, 
Whitfield and Edwards ; Brainard, Martyn and 
Livingstone ; and the other grand, good men, whose 
names are dear to us as the friends of God and man 
during their earthly pilgrimage. They are still at 
work for the Master, in appointed modes of service, 
more busy and loving and helpful than ever. Come 
still closer to yourself, my hearer, and picture in 
that most real world the forms of those whom you 
have personally known and loved. You remember 
the exact image of that departed husband or wife, 
parent or child, brother or sister. Christian friend or 
beloved pastor. Bring up to memory all these dear 
ones, in the undying part of their nature ; in their 
clearness of thought, in their vigor of reasoning, in 
their soundness of judgment, in their breadth of 
sympathy, in their wealth of affection, in their force 
of will, in their practical efficiency. How real these 
personal qualities were. How sensibly they af- 
fected you every day and constituted the real selves 
of those whom you so dearly loved in the bye-gone 
times. Think, then, not of their former bodily or- 
ganization, and thus of their lying insensible in the 
grave ; but always conceive of their spiritual nature, 
their true selves, which could not die. Then you will 
always imagine them as now living and as acting 
with increased powers. Name them over, in thought 
and often in word, as those who are actually in full 
and blessed employment in that world of life to 
which they have gone. If, like myself, you have 



72 

reached old age, these departed friends are very 
numerous ; if assembled, they would fill an immense 
audience room. Would it not seem quite natural, 
should you, some day, step into a church, and see 
them sitting there, as of old, with their familiar 
faces and pleasant expressions ? That is much as 
it will be, when some day you step into heaven, and 
find them all there. Ah, how real the very thought 
of this makes heaven seem ! So Whittier 



sings : 



I have friends in spirit -land ; 
Not shadows in a shadowy hand ; 
Not others, but themselves are they. 
And still I think of them the same 
As when the Master's summons came ; 
Their change, the holy morn-light breaking 
Upon the dream- worn. sleeper, waking, 
A change from twilight into day." 



8. — Shall I suggest one other method of making 
the next life seem real ; of making heaven approach 
visibility? It shall be that of t/ie study of the death- 
bed scenes of Christian believers, whereby you may 
learn how much sense of reality they had, as they 
passed out of the present life into the next. Con- 
sult the many memoirs of departed saints, and re- 
call scenes of which you may have been an eye-wit- 
ness. There was bodily weakness, indeed, but ac- 
companied by what marvelous spiritual strength 
and clearness of vision, as if of a present reality. 
You remember how Payson, on his dying bed ex- 
claimed : '' The celestial city is full in my view. 



73 

Its glories beam upon me, its breezes fan me, its 
odors are wafted to me, its sounds strike upon my 
ears, and its spirit is breathed into my heart. 
Nothing separates me from it, but the river of 
death, which now appears but as an insignificant 
riil, that may be crossed at a single step, whenever 
God shall give permission." Again he said: ** My 
soul, instead of growing weaker and more languish- 
ing, as my body does, seems to be endued with an 
angel's energies, and to be ready to break from the 
body and join those around the throne.'* " It seems 
as if my soul had found a pair of new wings and 
was so eager to try them, that in her fluttering she 
would rend the fine net work of the body to 
pieces." 

Sometimes the reality bursts for an instant on 
earthly vision, as in a case of an eminently godly 
woman of whose dying experience I was recently 
told by a minister. She was his wife's mother, and 
the family were plain, unimaginative farmer-folk. 
As, at the last moment, they stood around the bed, 
they repeated comforting passages of Scripture. It 
was a clear and cloudless day, just at noon. Sud- 
denly the apartment was filled with a radiance be- 
yond that of the sunlight, and so insufferably bright, 
that it could not be endured but for an instant. As 
the spectators looked at the aged dying saint, great 
was their amazement to see, in her place, amid the 
unearthly glory, the beauteous form of a young 
woman ; as if, at that moment, the glorified body 



74 

had emerged from the decaying earthy tabernacle. 
They all saw the same unexpected sight, and they 
found that the breath had fled from the body. This 
glimpse of the coming life had the stamp of the 
actual. I have no time to cite other illustrations, 
which would easily occupy hours. The point is not, to 
exhibit the happiness, which faith in Christ can sub- 
stitute for the ordinary fear of death, but to draw 
attention to the sense of reality, as regards the 
world to come, which then oftentimes floods the 
soul, reminding one of the martyred Stephen, who 
" being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up steadfastly 
into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus 
standing on the right hand of God," and whose last 
words were, ** Lord Jesus receive my spirit." I am 
sorry that it is not the fashion to be interested in 
Christian memoirs. They wonderfully strengthen 
faith, and brighten hope, and whoever makes 
himself familiar with the dying testimonies which 
they record, and calls often to mind the particulars 
of the exit of eminent believers from the world, will 
find the next life to be a growing reality to his 
mind, while the parting veil will become so thin as 
to be well nigh transparent. 

The effect of this state of mind is described in the 
text : " If we hope for that we see not, then do we 
with patience wait for it." Present cares and trials 
weigh lightly upon one who lives much in the future, 
while they often crush him who is engrossed in the 
passing moment. Patience is born of hope, and the 



75 

clearer our vision of the future, the greater is our 
power of endurance amid temporary ills. 

" In your patience ye are strong ; cold and heat ye take not wrong ; 
When the trumpet of the angel blows eternity's evangel, 
Time will seem to you not long." 

So Paul reasoned, in another epistle, when he wrote : 
" For our light affliction, which is but for a moment 
worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal 
weight of glory, while we look not at the things 
which are seen, but at the things which are not seen : 
for the things which are seen are temporal ; but the 
things which are not seen are eternal." 

And then, when the end of earth shall come, we 
shall not (as the dying skeptic called it) " take a 
leap in the dark," but amid the radiance bursting in 
shall wing our way to glory. We shall not seem to 
be leaving reality behind us, but to be retiring from 
shadows, and advancing into the only real state of 
being. 



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